"It's not him who's infatuated—it's me."
I mocked myself.
"Madame Marcel and Hannah often urge me to speak honestly."
"What do you mean?"
"That I care about him. They want me to confess my feelings."
Madame Cronach's hand, which had been applying rouge to my lips, stopped midair.
"Why are you so surprised?"
"Well, I'm surprised you seem to be doing so well despite such a sudden marriage."
"Anyone would think so—it's Vermont and Temnes, after all."
"I was very surprised to see how the Duke treats the Duchess."
"That's why I like him."
I closed my eyes at the feeling of the powder puff touching my cheek.
"He's surprisingly kind and attentive."
The man's attitude might change after a while. But it was true he was treating me gently now.
"The Duke would be happy to know the Duchess loves him."
"Maybe not. I don't want to talk about it because I'm afraid. Things are fine as they are right now."
I'd only discussed this with Madame Marcel and Hannah. I felt uncomfortable that Madame Cronach had so naturally brought up this topic, as if curious.
Maybe Madame Marcel had said something to her? Was she asking on behalf of someone else? She might want to know—as the salon owner, she probably received many curious questions from other nobles about my relationship with Kaian.
"You truly care for the Duke."
Madame Cronach smiled.
"Is that so obvious?"
"The fact that you're afraid of losing something means it's very precious to you."
"..."
I couldn't respond. I'd thought I wanted to avoid confronting my feelings because I was afraid the situation would worsen. But after listening to Madame Cronach's words, I realized I cared for Kaian far too deeply.
So precious that I was afraid of losing it.
"You're right. I might like him more than I realize."
"You're finished."
Madame Cronach quickly put away her cosmetics, took my hand to help me rise from the soft chair, and straightened my clothes.
I walked through the curtains. The man standing at the entrance to the box seat was being greeted by several people. Upon seeing me, Kaian approached and extended his arm.
"You look fine now."
Others wouldn't know. This man said these things to me with an arrogant, cold-looking face—but only mischief in his eyes.
I placed my hand on Kaian's outstretched arm and glanced at him.
"As expected, I wasn't fine earlier. Madame Cronach took time to fix my makeup. You knew but didn't tell me."
He'd told me that Temnes' honor depended on appearances and asked me to wipe away the rouge.
"Do you think the Duchess's disgrace isn't a blemish on Temnes?"
When I challenged him, Kaian raised the corner of his mouth slightly. At that moment, small gasps from women rang out throughout the theater.
He spoke softly to me, ignoring the commotion.
"If that were truly the case, I would have wrapped you in that curtain and carried you to the carriage."
I was shocked by Kaian's shameless words, and my heart felt tight.
*Ha, is this happening again?*
It was a different feeling from excitement.
*Kaian, I love you so much.*
The moment I thought that to myself, I felt like crying. When I'd heard Hannah's words, I couldn't even imagine confessing to Kaian. But now, it felt as if the moment when I'd have no choice but to tell him was slowly approaching—because I couldn't hold back the emotions rising in my throat.
---
Salon Arvo thrived both day and night.
Hannah stood on the terrace, illuminating the darkened path with an oil lamp as she gazed down at the carriages hurrying past. It was a famous location with a view of the royal castle, but she had no eyes for such scenery. She waited anxiously for Madame Cronach to return, her eyes fixed on the entrance to Salon Arvo.
*Aunt Leonie.*
*You were alive.*
Something hot churned in Hannah's heart. As soon as she'd seen her, she'd wanted to demand why Leonie hadn't visited Claudel all this time. But no further explanation was needed once Madame Cronach had shown her scarred body.
In that moment, the faint hope that her parents and younger brother might be alive somewhere was extinguished and blown away.
Living people leave traces. Although Plogne had been at the edge of Valmonde's estate, that didn't mean no rumors or information circulated. Evan had spread word to the castle at the base of the mountain closest to Plogne village that he was taking Claudel and Hannah to Castle Valmonde.
They'd asked all their regular contacts to notify them if anyone from Plogne village came looking for them. When the haggard man who'd lost his wife and had only one daughter left came to the neighboring village asking after them with a sad face, people had felt such pity that no one could refuse him.
Ten years of no news meant there was absolutely no hope. Still, Hannah had wondered if it was possible.
In the end, the wish to see her family again remained unfulfilled. Hannah wiped away the tears gathering in her eyes with her fingertips.
"She's lucky to be alive."
Claudel had found her mother. Hannah had always wanted her to be happy, but at this moment, her heart broke knowing that Claudel's good fortune had crushed her own fleeting hopes.
The fact that Madame Cronach hadn't mentioned Hannah's family at all confirmed their fate.
The village of Plogne was a place with secrets. After following a thin, narrow forest path difficult to find unless you knew it, you'd reach a cozy basin deep between the dense trees.
In the middle of the village stood a huge tree—Arbor.
Even thinking about it now, Arbor was a strange tree. Usually, any tree, grass, or flower growing in a forest had a name and could be propagated by cutting or planting. But Arbor was unique—the only one of its kind.
There were cases where male and female partners were needed to bear fruit, but Arbor was the only sacred tree, so there were no others of the same species.
Sometimes Hannah would follow her parents as they watered the arbor, tilting her head back to look at the branches reaching toward the sky. Even looking until her neck ached, little Hannah could only see endless branches stretching upward.
The tree didn't seem to be growing upward but rather appeared to be supporting the ground with its roots in the sky.
Those who watered the sacred tree and cared for it throughout their lives were known as children of the tree. And one of them would become Arbor's oracle.
It was recorded that Arbor showed strange signs whenever trouble befell the continent. The villagers, who usually wore simple cotton clothes like ordinary people, would don hoods and cover their faces with masks when messengers from royal families came as guests.
Meanwhile, the children would take the treats brought by guests and go play in the forest. So it was normal for the children not to know which of the adults was Arbor's oracle.
Hannah, who—like Claudel and her sisters—had gone back and forth between their homes, had happened to see a pattern on the inside of Leonie's arm when she was about six years old.
*"Aunt Leonie, what's this?"*
It had looked like a single round fruit hanging from a tree branch. Leonie had said her arm hurt and always kept it bandaged. When Hannah saw the symbol, she'd thought, *That's what makes Aunt Leonie's arm hurt.*
But she'd thought it would be rude to ask more of Leonie, who'd smiled silently, rebandaged her arm, and offered no explanation. So Hannah had simply kept quiet.
Sometimes, as she grew older, she naturally understood and learned things without anyone having to explain them.
A single fruit on a branch of an arbor that bore no fruit—that was the mark of Arbor's oracle. The leader of a village that worshiped a sacred tree and guarded the secret of prophecy.
After the village burned down and long years had passed, Hannah wondered if Claudel knew about this. The trauma had caused Claudel's insomnia and memory loss—she couldn't even remember her mother's face. It wasn't something Hannah would ask out of mere curiosity. So Hannah had kept it to herself all this time.
"I can't believe Aunt Leonie lied to me."
It hadn't occurred to Hannah that she'd been deceived. However, Madame Cronach couldn't completely answer what Hannah was curious about.
"If this salon was built with a lord's financial backing, in reality the owner is no different from the lord."
If Madame Cronach had been injured that badly, it would have been nearly impossible for her to be rescued from outside the village—which required a long walk up a concealed mountain path, even from the nearest castle.
"So did someone from Temnes come to visit the village of Plogne?"
Why? For what reason? At a time when the village was burning out of control?
As Hannah's thoughts trailed off, she heard a noise from the hallway outside the room.
*Creak.*
When her door opened and she saw Madame Cronach waiting there, Hannah greeted her eagerly.
"You're back!"
"...Yes."
"Why so late? What about Claudel? You met her, didn't you?"
Madame Cronach nodded. However, contrary to Hannah's expectations, she seemed dejected.
"Why do you look like that? What did Claudel say?"
Could it be that Claudel had said she couldn't remember her mother's face? Hannah felt embarrassed, but she thought the kind Claudel couldn't have hurt Madame Cronach deliberately. It didn't matter—Hannah could serve as witness.
"I couldn't tell her."
"Why not?"
As Hannah looked puzzled, Madame Cronach smiled faintly with her scarred face.
"Hannah... have you ever killed someone?"
---